A Month in Review: July 2013 Edition

Books Reviewed

• A Tap on the Window by Linwood Barclay
• Drift by Jon McGoran
• The Big Reap by Chris F. Holm
• The Last Camellia by Sarah Jio
• Big Girl Panties by Stephanie Evanovich
• World War Z: The Complete Edition: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks
• The Never List by Koethi Zan
• Countdown City by Ben H. Winters
• The Exiles by Allison Lynn
• Close My Eyes by Sophie McKenzie
• Whistling Past the Graveyard by Susan Crandall
• Tampa by Alissa Nutting

Total books reviewed: 12

Picks of the month:
*Heavy sigh* This is always the most difficult decision I face each month. Never can I pick simply one book, but a short list instead. So here you go:

Favorite genre-crossing books:
The Big Reap
Countdown City

Favorite audio book:
World War Z

Book that I can’t seem to get out of my head:
Tampa

Special Events

For the past several months, I have been an active contributor to Bloggers Recommend, a monthly newsletter that has two goals:

1. Provide a place for readers to learn about some of the best upcoming books every month.
2. Highlight the recommendation power of both the blogger community and individual bloggers themselves.

In addition to submitting recommendations of books I’ve adored, I’m also responsible for community outreach, basically working with libraries and independent bookstores create their own tailored version of the Bloggers Recommend newsletter.  Interested in learning more? Contact me at jenn@bloggers-recommend.com.

Following are some of my most recent recommendations:

Love and Lament by John Milliken Thompson
Lost Girls: An Unsolved American Mystery by Robert Kolker
Instructions for a Heatwave by Maggie O’Farrell
And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini
NOS4A2 by Joe Hill

I really do encourage you to sign up for this newsletter, not just because I’m a contributor and founding member, but because of the wealth of book recommendations it contains. Each month, I discover several books that I promptly add to my must-read list, and in the month of August, you have a great incentive to subscribe!

I’m excited to announce that I have one copy  THREE COPIES of the long-awaited novel by Donna Tartt, Goldfinch to give away, thanks to the generous people at Little, Brown, and Company!   To enter, all you have to do is subscribe to Bloggers Recommend.  Come back and tell me you’ve subscribed in the comments below. Make sure you add the email address you subscribed under to your comment in the email address field. Don’t worry, this isn’t visible to others.  At the end of August, I will randomly select an individual winner three individuals who will receive an ARC of Goldfinch prior to publication! I will verify the subscription so simply commenting that you have subscribed won’t work 🙂 Find out about more chances to win over at Bloggers Recommend!

Ok, now that all that business is aside, what was your favorite book read in July? With fall just around the corner, what books are you looking forward to?